A COLUMN BY Dick Rolfe Chairman, THE DOVE FOUNDATION

January 2000

Teen Seeks One Million Voices to Call for Edited Movies

Everywhere I go, people ask me if there is something that can be done to persuade Hollywood to release kinder gentler versions of some movies by snipping of a couple of obscene words or by eliminating a brief nude scene. Unfortunately, this issue resembles Mark Twain's famous quote that, "Everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it." 

The following story which appeared in the Deseret News in Utah tells of one young person who is doing something constructive in an attempt to change things for the better. 

Elise Jenkins, 18, of Harrison, Ark., is seeking 1 million names signed on a petition for more family-suitable movies. After collecting these signatures, she plans to write producers, asking them to edit their movies for a G-rated version when possible.

Ideally, she envisions a video store where, next to the original movie, there is one that is suitable for viewing by the entire family. This stems from her watching "Titanic" while it was still in theaters.

"I was extremely upset at the movie," Jenkins said in a telephone interview from her home in Harrison. "There was a ton of language and the nude scene and tentative sex scene. . . . I should have walked out of the movie, but I didn't."

With more than 75,000 names collected at press time, it's clear that many are in favor of her desire for a kinder, gentler form of entertainment fare. Jenkins receives, on average, about 50 names a week.

Participants are able to sign the petition by printing it off her Web site http://www.goodworks.net/elise/webpage-petition-01.shtml collecting signatures and mailing it to her. Many people have found out about her project though e-mail chains.

Whether she'll actually reach her goal of 1 million names is unclear. Even she is a bit skeptical about collecting as many names as she's trying for; the only way she believes she will reach her goal in time is if "something major happens."

Originally, she was aiming for the end of this year as a deadline. When it became apparent she probably wouldn't reach such an astronomical number in time, she lengthened it, something she has had to do several times already. Currently she's aiming for the spring of 2000.

When asked if nudity alone is what Jenkins opposes in today's films, she responded that violence is just as much of a problem. "It's had an effect on the problems in the schools with the shootings.. I feel the violence, as well as the nudity, sex and pornography, creates thoughts in people's minds and they end up doing stuff they shouldn't and normally wouldn't."

Elsie's is not a new concept. Tens of millions of people share her dream. But only when enough people rise up as one voice and demand wholesome entertainment, then back up their demands by refusing to compromise their values at the box office or video store, will the studios respond.

Ever since Dove was founded in July of 1991, we have been talking to the studios about releasing airline edited versions of certain movies to home video stores nationwide. Executives have remained adamant in their opposition to such a move. They don’t believe we really want so-called "saccharin" movies sans sex, violence and profanity. You see, they judge us moviegoers by what we do, not by what we say. 

My advice to anyone who signs Elsie Jenkins' petition is, "Don't stop there. Back up your signature with a proactive response by refusing to attend movies that contain unsavory behaviors and messages." 

A favorite poem of mine sums it up in the title, "I'd Rather See a Sermon Than Hear One Any Day." 

Copyright © 2000, The Dove Foundation. All rights reserved.